Zeke Smith was outed as a transgender man on a controversial episode of "Survivor: Game Changers." The 29-year-old asset manager who lives in Brooklyn told People he struggled to forgive fellow contestant Jeff Varner who revealed the information during a Tribal Council.

Hide Caption

3 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Caitlyn Jenner, previously known as Bruce, revealed her new name and gender in Vanity Fair in June 2015. Jenner's announcement was called a watershed moment for transgender visibility. She appeared in the reality show "I Am Cait."

Hide Caption

4 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Laverne Cox, who was cast as Frank-N-Furter in the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" remake, is the first openly transgender person to be nominated for an Emmy. She appeared on the VH1 reality show "I Want to Work for Diddy" and later produced her own series, "TRANSform Me." She now portrays Sophia, a trans woman in prison, on the Netflix show "Orange Is the New Black." She received the Emmy nomination for that role.

Hide Caption

5 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

YouTube star Jazz Jennings is joining the ranks of prominent transgender individuals doing their part to increase the community's visibility in the media. The 14-year-old activist appeared in Clean & Clear's latest digital campaign, and she's starring in a TLC reality show.

Hide Caption

6 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Former male model Andrej Pejic revealed to People magazine in July 2014 that she has undergone sex reassignment surgery and is now Andreja.

Hide Caption

7 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Former "Drag Race" contestant Carmen Carrera wants to be the first transgender model to walk the runway for the Victoria's Secret fashion show.

Hide Caption

8 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Alexis Arquette is not only a member of a famous acting family, but also a transgender woman who has appeared in several films, including "Down and Out in Beverly Hills."

Lana Wachowski was "Laurence" when she and her brother Andy directed films like "The Matrix."

Hide Caption

11 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Producer/director Lilly Wachowski used to be Andy and transitioned after her sister Lana Wachowski.

Hide Caption

12 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Chaz Bono transitioned from Chastity Bono, which is how many fans knew him when he appeared on his parents variety series, "The Sonny & Cher Show."

Hide Caption

13 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Isis King was a contestant on the 11th and 17th cycles of "America's Next Top Model."

Hide Caption

14 of 16

Photos:Transgender celebrities

Ines Rau posed nude with male supermodel Tyson Beckford. The French model said she became a woman at age 16 because "I just woke up one day realizing that it's enough, I need to embrace who I am and be loved for what I am and what I have been through, without the fear of being rejected."

Story highlights

(CNN)The transgender community is celebrating several milestones thanks to one teen doing her part for transgender visibility.

Activist and YouTube star Jazz Jennings will star in a reality show debuting on TLC this summer, the network announced last week. "All That Jazz" will feature the 14-year-old and her family dealing with typical teen drama through the lens of a transgender youth.

It's the latest show to focus on transgender individuals, along with Discovery Life's "New Girls on the Block" and ABC Family's "My Transparent Life," on the heels of Amazon's Golden Globe-winning comedy, "Transparent."

"Jazz's story is universal, yet unique, and we're proud to partner with her family to share it with TLC's audience. Jazz may be known as an author and activist, but she's first and foremost a teenage girl with a big, brave heart, living a remarkable life," TLC General Manager Nancy Daniels said.

Jazz Jennings and her family will appear in "All That Jazz!" on the TLC network.

Recognition of transgender people in the media shows mainstream America "we're real people," said Christine Connelly, a member of the board of directors of the Boston Alliance of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Youth who came out as transgender woman five years ago.

What makes Jazz so "special," in the words of transgender actor Laverne Cox?

Her trajectory is unique, starting with her early debut in the public eye at a time when stories of transgender people -- adults or children -- were scarce.

"She was the first young person who picked up the national spotlight, went on TV and was able to articulateher perspective and point of view with such innocence," Connelly said.

She even co-wrote a children's book in 2014 based on her experience, "I am Jazz," about a transgender girl.

Her parents also demonstrated their unwavering support for her early on, something transgender children can't always count on, Connelly said.

Jazz and her family first appeared in the public eye in a 2007 television interview with ABC News' Barbara Walters. She was 6 years old and had just started appearing in public as a female, in what the report called "one of the youngest known cases of an early transition from male to female."

The segment with Walters said Jazz was diagnosed with "gender identity disorder," a term long considered stigmatizing by mental health specialists. It was eliminated from the American Psychiatric Association manual in 2012 and replaced with "gender dysphoria," a condition in which people feel strongly that they are not the gender they physically appear to be.

Jazz and her parents said she began gravitating to "girl things" at an early age and insisting she had the wrong genitalia. At home, she wore dresses but in public she wore pants to maintain a "gender neutral appearance."

That all changed at her fifth birthday party, when she wore a one-piece bathing suit and told her friends she was a girl, her parents told ABC.

The interview catapulted Jazz and her family into the spotlight. Jazz has appeared on various television networks and news outlets, including an ABC update with Barbara Walters at age 11, a segment with Katie Couric, a report on 60 Minutes, and an Oprah Winfrey Network documentary, "I am Jazz: A Family in Transition."

The exposure has shaped Jazz into a transgender advocate and spokesperson who uses social media to connect with fans and followers. She has more than 20,000 Instagram followers and 33,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel, where she posts her speeches, DIY craft tutorials and musings about being a transgender youth.

Occasionally, she responds to questions in video Q&As, fielding tough questions about her hormone treatment and bullying with grace and ease. She began using testosterone blockers at age 11 to stop her from growing body hair, "or else I would have a hairy beard right now, which I don't so I'm thankful for that," she told fans in her most recent Q&A video.

It may seem like a charmed life but Jazz says she still faces bullying and mistreatment from people who don't understand her. The comments on her social media accounts are littered with profane attacks on her and her family.

The question came up in her Q&A: "How do you feel when people judge you?"

Join the conversation

See the latest news and share your comments with CNN Health on Facebook and Twitter.

Clearly, it's a topic she's given some thought to.

"I don't care what people think. The only opinion that really affects me is my own opinion of myself because I determine the way I am, not anyone else," she said. "If someone says something hurtful to you or makes you feel down on yourself then you just gotta stay positive and keep moving forward because they might not know much about you or they may not understand the situation."